


On the Same Side of the Court

by karukagexp



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fluff, Humor, Internal angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Realizing you're gay be like..., Some Swearing, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:48:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24959410
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karukagexp/pseuds/karukagexp
Summary: He had done it. After years of fighting against those who said it was impossible, Shoyou had finally proven them wrong. He may have joined volleyball late compared to others, and he may not have been technically skilled or smart at the beginning (as Kageyama was quick to point out), but he worked harder than anyone and made it onto the world stage. More importantly, he faced Kageyama and fulfilled the promise he made to him after their first match. He had won.Note, I have not actually read the manga. I've just seen spoilers on Twitter and was inspired by a comic made by @vikjoestar_art on Twitter.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio
Comments: 7
Kudos: 66





	On the Same Side of the Court

**Author's Note:**

> I have not actually read the manga. I've just seen spoilers on Twitter and was inspired by a comic made by @vikjoestar_art on Twitter. You can click the images to see the comic on twitter or you can see it at https://twitter.com/vikjoestar_art/status/1276761212018196480. 
> 
> I just really wanted more kagehina fluff because why not. Enjoy!

The game was over. They had done it. _He_ had done it. After years of fighting against those who said it was impossible, Shoyou had finally proven them wrong. He may have joined volleyball late compared to others, and he may not have been technically skilled or smart at the beginning (as Kageyama was quick to point out), but he worked harder than anyone and made it onto the world stage. More importantly, he faced Kageyama and fulfilled the promise he made to him after their first match. He had _won._

As his feet finally landed on the floor and the echoes of the ball slamming onto the court dimmed, Hinata pumped his fist into the air and gave a triumphant yell. His team (particularly Bokuto) jumped on top of him as they celebrated their win.

The whistle sounded and both teams rushed to line up and thank the other team for the game. At first, Shoyou couldn’t fathom why Kageyama was smiling at him from the other end of the court. He lost, shouldn’t he be upset? Then again, Kageyama was so obviously enjoying himself throughout the game that perhaps it was the playing itself, rather than winning, that was fun this time. Shoyou found himself smiling back.

As they approached each other to give a handshake, Shoyou suddenly felt nervous. _Nervous? Why? It’s just Kageyama! We talked smack before the match! Then again, what should I say to him? After winning what should I say?_

Their hands met and Shoyou suddenly couldn’t breathe. They were both sweating and Hinata’s hand felt raw and sensitive but the touch sent shivers down his spine. Kageyama had grown. He filled the frame he had in high school and wore an expression of such confidence that made Shoyou feel so _proud._ Kageyama had come so far since that first game they played together. He was a team player but didn’t let his team slack. He was self-assured. It was a good look on him.

“Nice receive,” Kageyama said, smirking.

Shoyou smiled back. “Nice toss.” After a moment, they squeezed each other’s hands for a moment before releasing. Kageyama turned back to his team, who were commiserating over the loss and no doubt talking about what they need to work on. Shoyou couldn’t take his eyes off of Kageyama’s back. Not until he turned the corner heading towards the locker rooms and disappeared.

“Shoyou-kun?”

“Huh?” Shoyou didn’t even know who was calling him.

“It’s time for the interviews.”

“Right…” After a moment he turned to speak to one of the reporters. Despite his excitement about their win, Shoyou felt confused. He felt a swirl of emotions after seeing Kageyama again. He just couldn’t parse out what the feelings were. Bokuto chanted his usual _HEY HEY HEYYYYY_ from across the room and Hinata snapped out of his reverie. He’ll come back to this later… probably.

\---

The next day he took a train back to Miyagi and grabbed a taxi to visit his mother. On the way, they passed Karasuno. He felt his heart rate increase as he remembered the races that would start from this very point with Kageyama. He turned his eyes forward again, feeling very nostalgic as they crossed the mountain.

Once he arrived at his mother’s house, he was surprised to see Natsu sitting at the kitchen table with his mother.

“Shoyou!” His mother exclaimed, jumping out of her chair to come greet him at the genkan.

“I’m home, mom!” He grinned as brightly as she was.

“Welcome home, Shoyou.” She grabbed him and gave him a hug. His mom always gave the best hugs.

“I remembered that we are out of eggs so I couldn’t make your favorite! I’m just going to run to the store, but I wanted to see you first. Is there anything you need?”

“You don’t need to do that, mom, I’m fine with whatever we have in the house.”

“No no, Shoyou! You won your _big game_ , so of course you deserve to have your favorite! I’ll only be gone a few minutes. Catch up with your sister, alright? No arguing, please.” And just like that the door was shut.

Shoyou turned back to look in shock at Natsu. She just shrugged. “You know how she is. Once she makes a decision there’s no changing her mind.”

“Wonder where you get it from,” Shoyou said smirking at Natsu.

“You mean where _you_ get it from _Ninja Shoyou.”_

“Oh so you heard about my nickname? Pretty cool, huh?

“If by cool you mean dorky,” Natsu said, rolling her eyes in jest.

Shoyou finished stripping his jacket and stepping into his slippers before sitting down across from her.

“Sooo you won, then?” Natsu asked.

“Yeah! It was a blast!”

“Tell me about it, I didn’t have a chance to see it.”

“Well I was able to receive Kageyama’s _monster_ serve and I even received one of Ushijima’s _spikes!_ If that wasn’t incredible enough-“

Natsu tuned out the rest of the conversation. It wasn’t that she didn’t care about volleyball (because to not care about volleyball was to not care about Shoyou), but she was more interested in really seeing her brother. Sure, they’d skyped and emailed each other, but it really wasn’t the same as seeing him in person. He looked… old. Not as in 60+ years old, but… like an _adult_. Shoyou has always been so youthful, so to see him actually look like an adult was… a bit shocking for her. She will always be proud of him and how far he’s come, but he will also still be the best older brother she could imagine.

After taking him in, she tuned back into the conversation only to hear Shoyou talking about Tobio-kun.

“ I have never seen Kageyama smile so much! His serves were reaaally nasty. He was having a blast!” Shoyou paused. He remembered the smiles he could just barely catch whenever Shoyou received the ball really well or when he spiked the ball so hard it was irrefutable. He remembered the frustrated smiles too. The ones where he realized the Shoyou was _good_. That he could stand on his own and _beat_ him. It wasn’t that he was mad. He was happy and excited to fight against Shoyou.

“I… never saw him that happy.” He didn’t really mean to say it, but he means it. Their friendship was important and he’s sure it made Kageyama happy. But, for the _Genius Setter™,_ having someone who challenged him and made him fight… he knows it’s all Kageyama has wanted for a while. He always accepted Kageyama’s criticism because he knew it came from wanting Shoyou to improve enough to stand against him. To challenge his rule and to overcome him. The thrill of the win isn’t satisfying unless you have to _claw_ your way to victory and seize it with bloody hands. They both knew that, which is why seeing Kageyama happy made him happy. He made him happy.

He saw her staring a bit dumbfounded, so he elaborated, “He…” Shoyou paused to really think of the right term for his brilliance, “He was really shining on the court. You didn’t _see_ him, Natsu. He was having _so_ much fun… ”

At this point, Shoyou was staring off into space again. Remembering the intense look of happiness and determination in Kageyama’s eyes every time he was able to toss the ball.

“Heh, I couldn’t keep my eyes from him. Damn Kageyama is amazing. Ugh- I hate him so--”

“Nii-chan,” Natsu interrupted.

“Hm? What?” He had been spacing out. He didn’t realize Natsu was smiling.

“When did you realize you were in love with Tobio-kun?”

“Eh?”

[ ](https://twitter.com/vikjoestar_art/status/1276761538553155584)

Time stood still for a moment. Or rather time flowed backwards. Shoyou was suddenly tumbling through his memories of his time with Kageyama. The feeling he got when he stood equal to him on the court. The burning sensation on his palms when he spiked one of his tosses. The bitter taste in his mouth when he realized he couldn’t continue playing in the national tournament their first year. The heartbreak he felt looking into Kageyama’s face when he realized the same thing. The moments where they teased each other off the court, shared food, practiced tosses late into the night. The races and intense, passionate competition they had. The loneliness of not being on the same team or even in the same country. Hearing his name on the television as Kageyama played in the Olympics _without_ him and feeling equal parts jealousy, loneliness, and _pride_. The desire to make Kageyama proud. The desire to make Kageyama happy.

_Oh shit._

“Nii-chan are you ok?” Natsu said. “You look very pale.”

“I… uh… I’m _not_ in love with To- with Kageyama. He’s just… he’s…”

“Nii-chan it’s ok. I knew you two were in love a long time ago.”

“ _T-t-t-t-two?!_ Even if I’m in love with him, _which I definitely am not,_ there’s no way he’s… he can’t…”

Shoyou stood up rapidly. The frantic and irregular beating of his heart, the realization that _holy shit he might be a little gay for Kageyama,_ and the certainty he had that Kageyama could _never_ feel the same or that even if he did, he could never act on those feelings due to public outrage all happened within the course of a few seconds _. I’ve gotta get out of here._

“Nii-chan are you-“

“I feel sick, I’m gonna take a walk. I’ll be back for dinner, ok?”

He rushed to the genkan, quickly put on his tennis shoes, not even bothering to properly tie them, and grabbed his jacket before opening the door. His mother was there.

“Shoyou? Where are you going? I’m just about to make dinner.”

“Sorry, mom, I need to take a walk, I’m just… not feeling myself right now. I promise I’ll be home for dinner.” He kissed her on the cheek and ran out the door.

He wasn’t even thinking of any place in particular. He just knew he needed to go somewhere else. _I can’t cry in front of Natsu, I’m supposed to be the strong one._

_I can’t love Kageyama. He’s my opponent now. He’s good at what he does, he’s never even shown interest in a romantic relationship or even a sexual one. Sure, he may be volleyball-smart, talented, tall, cool, pretty…_

“Wait, pretty?!” He said and stopped himself. _I can’t say that…_

He stopped his anxious thoughts and looked around. He recognized the neighborhood, but… why… He turned the corner instinctively and realized why. The old Kageyama residence was up ahead. He stopped in his tracks. Kageyama wouldn’t be there now. Obviously. He’s pretty sure he read a thing that the Adlers always lightly practiced the day after games so they could recap—

Before he could finish his thought, the door opened. Tobio came outside. He was wearing one of his sponsor’s shirts ( _did they sell them bigger than skin-tight?!_ ) and sweatpants and _oh no I’m definitely gay. How did I not realize this before now?_

Kageyama looked away from him and instinctively, Shoyou hid behind a bush so that when Kageyama looked the other way, which he did, he wouldn’t see Shoyou staring at him. He paused and then started jogging down towards Shoyou. Shoyou couldn’t tell if he had seen him or not so he decided to stay hidden.

“Dumbass, do you really think a bush could hide your _flaming red hair?_ I may not be the smartest person in the world, but I’m not a dumbass like you.”

Shoyou jumped up. “Meany-yama! I’m not a dumbass _you’re_ the dumbass!”

“SHUT UP YOU’RE BEING TOO LOUD!”

“NO YOU’RE—”

The door of the house they were in front of slammed opened and they were confronted with an older woman smiling but obviously angry at them.

“Young men, could you please lower your voices or go inside? You’re _both_ being quite disruptive.”

“… Yes ma’am.”

Kageyama jerked his head and headed towards his house. Shoyou nodded and blushed. It had been a long while since he had been inside the Kageyama residence. He had certainly not been inside it when he knew he had a _crush on Kageyama Tobio._

“Sorry for the intru—”

“No one’s home so you don’t need to do that.” Kageyama said kicking off his shoes and walking inside. Shoyou quickly did the same and jogged to catch up to him.

“Sooo Kageyama-kun. Whatcha doing back in Miyagi? Aren’t you supposed to be at practice?”

“I skipped.”

“WHAT?! The national volleyball _Genius Setter_ ™ is taking an unsanctioned day off?? What is this?”

“What? The notorious dumbass Hinata using ‘unsanctioned’ despite being a dumbass?”

“Hey! I was just making a comment! No need to be rude rudey-yama.” Shoyou was pouting on the outside, but smiling on the inside. It felt nice getting back into the groove of their friendship.

A silence fell over them. Kageyama went into the kitchen and got two glasses of water. He sipped on his while leaning against the kitchen counter and just stared at Shoyou.

“So?” He asked.

“So… what?” Shoyou replied, rubbing his finger along the rim of his glass.

“You come all the way here, presumably from your mom’s house over the mountain, to come see my house, which you weren’t sure I was staying in today. Why?”

“I… didn’t mean to. My feet sorta carried… me… here.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I thought you wanted to see me.” Kageyama turned away and put his glass into the sink. He refused to look back at Shoyou.

Shoyou paused. “I did, I do! But… why did you skip practice to come back to Miyagi?”

“I saw your interview saying you were taking a few days to go visit family and I thought that… maybe… well it was stupid so it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to talk to me if you don’t want—”

“I _just said_ I wanted to see you. I’m _glad_ you’re here. It was a surprise but a pleasant one.”

Kageyama turned his head to just barely look at Shoyou. “ _Why_ did you want to see me?”

“I…” He knew he couldn’t tell him the truth. They were just starting to talk again. “I don’t know.”

Kageyama turned around fully and walked past Shoyou. Shoyou scoffed and followed him, leaving his glass on the counter.

“Why do I need an excuse to see one of my best friends now that we’re both in the same country, hah? Can’t I just want to see how you’re doing and catch up?” He asked walking briskly to catch up with Kageyama.

“You _can,_ I just… ugh. I don’t know how to say it.” Kageyama sat down on tatami mat and buried his face in his hands.

“Say _what,_ Kageyama?” Shoyou was pushy, but kind. He got down on the mat next to Kageyama and attempted to pry his hands away from his face. Unsuccessfully. Shoyou sighed.

“I thought that there was something…” Kageyama stopped and it didn’t seem like he wanted to continue.

“Look, you don’t have to tell me anything. We’ve barely had contact since we graduated and it’s not like I’m entitled to information, but if we’re going to re-kindle our friendship—”

“I don’t want to _re-kindle our friendship._ ”

Shoyou paused. He felt the cracks in his heart caused by his doubt start to ache and break apart. It must have shown on his face because suddenly Kageyama looked panicked.

“Nonono you’re misunderstanding what I mean. It’s just embarrassing and I probably shouldn’t say it but UGH! I knew taking love advice from Ushijima of all people was a mistake. I—” he slapped his hand over his mouth. Shoyou felt the air leave his lungs and his eyes grow wide as dinner plates.

“L-l-l-l-love advice? Kageyama, what are you saying?”

Kageyama sighed and let his hands fall from his face. “I promised myself that when we finally reached the same level and were on the same court that I could finally give in. You did more than that. You _beat_ me. You were more incredible than I remembered. I couldn’t take my eyes off you when the ball was on your side. You were… _dynamic_ and _electric_ and I knew it was time.”

“Time?” Shoyou asked weakly. Kageyama had never given him this many compliments before and it was kind of scary.

“Shoyou.” Hinata sucked in a breath at that. Kageyama had never called him that before. “I always want to play volleyball with you. When we played yesterday, I didn’t want the game to end. If it could have gone on forever, perhaps I would have been happy. I am happy, though. I want to stand on the court again with you. Always. You are… who I’ve been looking for since I started playing volleyball. Someone who challenges me, who reminds me why the game is _fun._ Volleyball with you is.. the best volleyball.”

Shoyou stopped. It wasn’t a love confession? “So… you want me to transfer to the Adlers?”

“ _No!_ I mean, if you want but I want to play with you however you want me to.”

“That’s what she said,” Shoyou couldn’t help himself. He didn’t expect Kageyama’s response, though.

“EXACTLY, DUMBASS!”

Shoyou shut up real quick.

“You… want to fuck me?”

“No! I mean, eventually, maybe, but it’s more than that.” Kageyama put his hands on Shoyou’s shoulders and looked him dead in the eye and said, “You are volleyball for me. I love volleyball. I want to stand on the same side of the court with you, always.”

_‘You are volleyball’… ‘I love volleyball’… does that mean…_

“Are you trying to say you love me?!” Shoyou exclaimed.

Kageyama hugged Shoyou. He hid his face in Shoyou’s neck, but Shoyou could still see the red blush on his neck.

“Kageyama… _Tobio_ , I—” At that Tobio sat up quickly and stared at Shoyou, who was taken aback by the intensity of his gaze and the blatant vulnerability and hope in his expression. He’s never seen anyone look at him like that.

“Tobio, I… want that too, you know. You will always be my setter.” As Kageyama’s expression flooded with relief, Shoyou couldn’t help it anymore and leaned in to kiss him. Both of them were inexperienced, so it wasn’t great, but they kept trying. And Shoyou knew they would work hard on it until they get it right. Even if it meant kissing into the late evening—

“OH FUCK!” Shoyou jumped up, accidentally hitting Kageyama in the face.

“Shoyou what the actual—”

“I told my mom I’d be back for dinner. She’s making my favorite and I can’t be late. Fuck it’s going to take so long going over the mountain and WHY ARE YOU IGNORING M—”

“I’m not ignoring you, dumbass, I’m calling you a ride so you don’t have to walk home.”

Shoyou smiled. Kageyama looked thoroughly kissed. His hair was askew, his mouth very red and swollen, a blush permanently settled in his cheeks… he really was beautiful even off the court… He looked up and--

Kageyama was looking at him.

“What? Is there something on my face?”

“No! It’s just… you’re really pretty, Tobio.” Shoyou was delighted to see the blush that was started to turn pink flush red once more and retreat down Tobio’s neck again.

“I’m not… dumbass Shoyou… where’s the fucking car.”

Shoyou chuckled. Soon the car arrived and Shoyou walked towards the car until he saw that Kageyama wasn’t following.

“Baka-yama aren’t you coming?”

Tobio looked genuinely surprised. “I… can I? I don’t want to interrupt your family time.”

“’I want to stand on the same side of the court with you, always’, right? Well, so do I!”

Kageyama stood there in shock. It was the most romantic thing ever said to him.

Shoyou saw him dumbfounded expression and rolled his eyes before waving Tobio over and whining, “Tobioooo come onnnnn my mom is waitinnnnnng.”

Tobio shook his head to snap out of his shock before frowning and responding with a classic, “You’re so goddamn annoying.”

Shoyou just skipped towards the car. “You love me though!”

Kageyama looked away and mumbled something suspiciously like, “yeah, of course I do, what of it?”

Shoyou smiled as they settled in the car and curled his pinky finger carefully around Tobio’s. They were going to stand on the same side of the court forever. It’s a promise.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you liked it or if I completely got something from the manga wrong please comment and let me know! I'm always happy to edit if I got something wrong.
> 
> ALSO thanks to @vikjoestar_art on twitter for the idea and the art. I've linked to the original post on twitter (click the pictures) or you can go to https://twitter.com/vikjoestar_art/status/1276761212018196480. Support artists!


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